100% of Ireland to have high-speed broadband by 2020

Minister Alex White announced plans to bring high-speed broadband access to every home, school and business in the country by 2020

by Eleanor Rosney

on 15th July, 2015

The Government published an Intervention Strategy today outlining plans to bring broadband speeds of 30Mbps and higher to 85% of Ireland by 2018.

By 2020, every home, school and business in the country will have access to high-speed broadband.

The strategy published today explains what will be expected of companies that bid to deliver the state intervention element of the National Broadband Plan.

The tendering process will begin in December, with the successful provider or providers implementing the new broadband system from mid 2016.

Providers that do bid for the project will need to guarantee minimum download speeds of 30Mbps, create an infrastructure that is capable of meeting current and future data demands, deliver a wholesale service that is open to all retailers and ensure that services are affordable, competitive and of a comparable standard and price, regardless of location.

Speaking at a stakeholder event at Croke Park today, Minister Alex White said: “In 2010, before this Government came to office, high-speed broadband was only available to 300,000 homes in Ireland. That figure has grown to well over a million homes, with the potential for commercial operators to deliver high-speed services to as many as 1.9 million premises.

“Under the intervention strategy I’m publishing today, we expect that 85% of the premises in Ireland will have access to high-speed broadband in 2018, increasing to 100% by 2020. Since becoming Minister for Communications, my approach has been to honestly point out the scale and challenge of the project we are delivering. It takes time and detailed planning to deliver a programme of this scale and ambition.

It is an infrastructure for the future. We will only be doing it once, and we intend to get it right.

“Last November, I published the high-speed broadband map, which helped us define the areas that need State intervention to ensure that every home, school, business, and community in Ireland gets access to quality broadband. At that time, I said we would publish the intervention strategy in mid-2015. Today I am making good on that commitment. I expect to be in a position to sign a contract or contracts with a winning bidder or bidders by mid-2016. We can then begin to physically connect our communities – all of our communities – to a modern, future-proofed, high-speed broadband network.”